Friends and Supporters - please check out the latest news from the parents at 24th Street Elementary School in Los Angeles.

Extraordinary Response to 24th Street Elementary School Parents’ Union Request for ‘Letters of Interest’ to transform failing school

Los Angeles, Calif. – Monday, January 28, 2013 – The 24th Street Elementary School Parents’ Union has received a total of eight ‘Letters of Interest’ (LOIs), from operators and organizations wanting to work with the parents on transforming their failing school. The extraordinary response comes just 11 days after more than 150 parents and children delivered their Parent Trigger petition directly to Superintendent John Deasy of the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Of the eight LOI’s received, six came from existing non-profit charter school operators: Academia Moderna;; Crown Preparatory Academy; Frederick Douglass Academy Elementary School & Vista Academy Elementary School; Global Education Academy; Celerity Global Development and Para Los Ninos. One was received from a former 24th Street Elementary School educator through an Education Management Organization (EMO), and the other was from the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).

The LOIs were received by the Parents Union after widely distributing a request to potential district partners and other school operators with the capability of working with parents in the transformation process. The Parents’ Union has established the 2013-2014 school year as the first year of their newly transformed school.

With a Friday, January 25 deadline, interested parties had one week in which to respond indicating their interest. This is a remarkable achievement, given the unprecedented nature of this process. The number of LOIs received exceeds the average number of LOIs received to transform currently failing schools through LAUSD’s “Public School Choice” process. It also represents double the number of applicants that the Desert Trails Parent Union received to run Desert Trails Elementary School, the first-ever victorious Parent Trigger transformation.

"We are very excited that eight high-quality LOIs have been received. Before we submitted our Parent Trigger petitions we only had one option for our children’s future – and even Superintendent Deasy agreed that it was a lousy one. Now we have eight! This gives us a real choice in who transforms our school in the coming months. We are pleased the school district is also participating in this process. Superintendent Deasy has made it clear he is committed to collaborating with us, and the District’s willingness to be a part of the ‘Request for Proposal’ (RFP) process confirms that commitment,” said Amabilia Villeda, lead parent coordinator for the 24th Street Elementary School parents.

"Today we are contacting those who did respond, and requesting them to join us in the next chapter of turning 24th Street Elementary School around by submitting a detailed proposal on how they would join us in transforming our school," Villeda said.

"We are asking these 'Requests for Proposal' (RFP) be returned by Friday, March 8, 39 days from today. We are looking forward to reviewing the full proposals once they are received, and moving forward rapidly to finally make our school a place of opportunity and success for our children.”

The final selection will ultimately be made by a vote of the parents who signed the Parent Trigger petition. This is accordance with California’s Parent Trigger law, regulations, and documents handed to each parent who signed the petition. A total of 69% of 24th Street Elementary School parents signed the petition.